Nepal, Jan. 24 -- By all accounts, Om Prakash Mahato (Dilip) was the sort of person Nepal needed. He was studying Mechanical Engineering, and was in his final year at Bhopal, India. He did not want to go abroad; he wanted to return home to his village Sripur, in Mithila Municipality of Dhanusa. He resolved disputes, according to his neighbour. And he had been protesting the illegal extraction of sand and pebbles from the Aurahi river for the last two years.

At a time when Nepal has surely been lacking role models one can look up to, the 24-year-old Dilip could have been a hero our republic needs. For surely, the murder of Dilip by Bipin Mahato, the owner of the Churiyamai Sand Processing Factory, and his cronies on 10 December 2019 is an...